Reunion
by Kaichi98
Summary: When Ordinal Scale had begun, a mysterious boy visits Aichi and a surprising turn of events would happen. What will Kai and the others do when they realize Aichi was one of the victims of the death game, SAO? DISCLAIMER! I don't own SAO and CFV! SAO movie spoilers!
1. Chapter 1

Hello, everyone! This is a new story and I hope everyone will enjoy this new story! Without further ado, let's start!

Normal POV

After the Neon Messiah incident was over, Aichi and the others were now at Card Capital discussing a few things involving their club when the door opened. A brown haired boy entered as he looked around before seeing Aichi.

" Hello, are you Aichi Sendou?"

" Yes. And you are?"

" Eiji. Eiji Nochizawa."

" I see. Is there something you need from me, Nochizawa-san?"

" I heard that you were the Asia Circuit Champion. Would you mind teaching me how to play Vanguard?"

" Huh? Me?"

" Yes. I would be grateful if I could be taught by a Asia Circuit Champion."

" I see. Then alright, I'll teach you. Misaki-san, do you have a trial deck for him to use?"

" Sure. I still have the Narukami Legion trial deck."

" Yeah, that should do. You don't mind, do you?"

" Yes, it's fine."

Misaki handed him the trial deck while he read the instructions for a bit before nodding.

" I'm ready."

" Then I'll go first to teach you the rules again, is that alright?"

" Yes, I'll be glad to."

" Stand up, Vanguard!"

~ After the fight~

The sixth damage landed on Eiji's Damage Zone as Aichi heaved a sigh of relief.

" That was a great fight, Nochizawa-san."

" But I lost to you. And just Eiji is fine."

" Alright... Then, Eiji-san, would you like to fight again sometime?"

" That should be fine. Could we exchange contact info?"

" Oh, sure!"

Both exchanged their phones to enter their contact info and when they were about to exchange their phones back again, Eiji muttered something which only Aichi could hear.

" Switch."

" Huh?"

Once their phones were back in their pockets, Aichi looked at Eiji more closely.

" Have I met you from somewhere?"

" No, we've only met today."

" Must've been my imagination then... I'll see you again then, Eiji-san!"

" Yeah."

Eiji left the shop and smirked as Naoki and the others approached Aichi.

" That was a great fight, Aichi! But as always, you're merciless!"

" Sendou-kun?"

Aichi was breathing slightly heavier while his face darkened as Naoki shook his shoulder. Aichi's breath hitched a little in surprise as he looked over to the others.

" Oh, guys..."

" Are you okay? You look pale."

" Yes, I'm just fine..."

He wiped away his sweat a little before regaining his composure.

" Now, let's get back to discussing about the club."

" Are you really okay? We can stop here if you want to."

" No, it's fine."

They started to walk back to their table when Aichi's vision blurred and he started to fall backwards. Just as he was about to hit the floor, a pair of warm arms caught him as he tried to identify the figure when a vision came.

" Eiji... kun..."

And he fainted...

 _~ In Aichi's dream~_

 _He was in a grassy plains with two other figures as the girl with white hair was singing and playing her music on her guitar while Aichi was lying down on the grass with another boy._

 _" Hey, Nautilus-kun, Yuna-san. I've been thinking. If one day, we could meet in the real world, can we be friends just like now? I mean, we've been trapped here for two years and I've been thinking about it for some time now."_

 _" We can. I'm sure of that."_

 _" And we can hang out together on a place like this. And stop with the honorifics."_

 _" I'm sorry, it's my habit."_

 _" Once we get back to the real world, I'll treat you guys to one of the best ramen I had."_

 _" I know! Let's exchange our real names and addresses! So when we get out of here we can find each other!"_

 _" That's a great idea, Yuna!"_

 _" So I'll start first. My name is already known."_

 _" Huh?"_

 _" I used my real name for my avatar name."_

 _" You too?!"_

 _" Aichi too?! Come on, you two! You guys should know that you don't use your real name for your online name!"_

 _" I didn't know what to name myself so..."_

 _" Yeah, me too."_

 _" Now it's your turn, Nautilus!"_

 _" My real name is Eiji Nochizawa."_

 _" Eiji-kun, huh... It's a wonderful name."_

 _" Yeah! So it's a promise! Once we're back in the real world, let's all see each other again!"_

 _" Yeah!"_

 _They also exchanged their addresses as they had fun again on the grassy plains._

 _~ Aichi's dream end~_

Aichi's eyes snapped opened as he quickly sat up while covering one of his eyes with his hand.

" That dream just now..."

" Are you finally awake?"

Aichi looked at his side to see Kai with a towel around his neck as Aichi blinked before blushing after realizing his situation.

" W-Why is Kai-kun here?!"

" Why? Because this is my apartment."

" K-Kai-kun's?! But why am I here...?"

" I came into the shop today but you collapsed and I caught you."

" So that was you..."

" Yeah. I tried to bring you home but your mother called your phone. She said that she'll be out of the house for a week and your little sister will be staying at her friend's house. Then she asked me to take care of you. I brought your daily necessities that she put at the front door of your house. It's in that bag by the cupboard."

" T-Then I'll be staying here until then...?"

" Yeah, it seems so. The others wouldn't when I asked them to after all. I'm the most free one around."

" I see... I'm sorry... I must've worried everyone when I fainted."

" Besides that, before you completely lost consciousness, you said 'Eiji'. Ishida and the others said that it was the name of the guy that asked you to teach him Vanguard today."

" Did I...? I can't remember..."

" You seem like you had a dream too. What did you see?"

" A grassy plains... A song... And..."

He paused a little as he put his hand over his eye again while he tried to remember.

" Nau... tilus...? Yu... na...? Meet... in the... real world...?"

" Aichi, get ahold of yourself! Look at me!"

" His real name... Eiji... Yuna and Eiji... Trapped... Two years... The real world..."

Aichi clenched his head as Kai shook his shoulders and Aichi snapped out of it.

" Aichi! Are you okay?!"

" Kai-kun...?"

" What's going on? Is something happening to your memories?"

" Memories...?"

Aichi suddenly went into a daze again as Kai tried to shake him again.

" Aichi? Aichi! Hey, snap out of it!"

He suddenly lifted up two fingers as he started to make motions.

" Aichi? Hey, Aichi!"

Aichi's eyes widened as his hands shook.

" Yuna... Don't go..."

Aichi clenched his head again as he started to wince in pain. After a few moments, he fainted again as Kai caught him and laid him back down on the bed.

" Aichi..."

Kai sighed in relief after making sure Aichi was sound asleep again as he rethink about what Aichi had muttered out and wrote it all down.

 _" Nautilus. Yuna. Eiji Nochizawa. Trapped... Two years. Real name and real world. Meet in the real world. Those motions he did. And... 'Yuna... Don't go...'. All of this seems to link together. I better get some help."_ Kai thought

He dialled a few numbers as he explained everything that had transpired and what he'd taken note of before putting his phone down.

" I'll need to know what he meant by all this by tomorrow... Who knows what'll happen..." Kai muttered

He then looked over to Aichi, who'd shifted a little in his sleep, as he wiped off a single tear that escaped. Without his knowledge, he slowly leaned forward towards Aichi's cheek. Just as his lips were about to make contact, his phone rang as he snapped out of his thoughts and answered the phone call.

" Hello?"

 _" Hey, Kai. I did some research right after you told me what happened. Remember there was a period of time after the Link Joker incident, Aichi-kun had to be admitted to the hospital several times?"_

" Yeah, so I heard. His body was suffering from a few exhaustion shutdowns, which causes him to faint often. Isn't it because of the Seed that time?"

 _" That's what we thought at first but right now, I found out that during that period, there was another incident going on."_

" Another one?"

 _" Yes, the SAO incident."_

" SAO incident?"

 _" Sword Art Online. The NerveGear that allows people to full dive into a virtual environment. For two years, about 10,000 players were trapped in that virtual world with the danger of 'If your HP goes down in the virtual world, you die in the real world.' There's been many cases of deaths by the NerveGear, which could've been cause by the death in the virtual world."_

" Who in the world is that crazy to trap 10,000 people in a death game?"

 _" The one who created SAO, Kayaba Akihiko. He died as well because when the game was cleared, he did a high levelled scanning to his brain. I think that's what caused his death."_

" Then he joined the death game too...? But I don't get what's it got to do with Aichi."

 _" During his trips to the hospital, the company for SAO was creating a new device, the Amusphere. Aichi-kun didn't know about the incident either and he volunteered to enter that world using the prototype Amusphere."_

" Aichi did...?"

 _" Yes, we confirmed it from the hospital itself. But when he full dived into that world, his memories and the data of others alive inside that world, got their memories jumbled as well. It made Aichi-kun think he was in that world for two years as well. I think he also eventually made friends with that Nautilus and Yuna people."_

" But why didn't Aichi say anything?"

 _" He can't remember. Whenever he comes out of that world through the company's system, he didn't remember anything that involved being in that world. And when the game was cleared, the experiments stopped as well. I think it was for a month, that was before Aichi-kun decided to disappear from this world as well because of the Seed."_

" Then when he said 'Yuna, don't go'..."

 _" That Yuna person must've died inside that world. The trauma was huge if anything. For someone like him to see a friend killed in front of him must've been scary. I don't think it would've mattered since he can't remember being in SAO after being disconnected from the Amusphere but if Eiji Nochizawa is the SAO survivor, Nautilus, it can be safe to assume that seeing him triggered the memories."_

" I see. Thanks. Tell me more once you find out anything new."

 _" Leave it to me!"_

Kai put down the phone call as he sighed.

 _" Aichi was in an experiment and I didn't know...?! I promised myself after the Link Joker incident to protect him but I..."_ Kai thought

" ... What foolish things you did, Aichi..."

Kai went to make their dinner as Aichi woke up soon after and Kai didn't ask any questions and instead, took care of Aichi like he was supposed to. The next few days were normal for Aichi as he suddenly received a message during lunch.

" Oh, it's Eiji-san."

He replied the message and kept his phone. After lunch, he walked back to class with Naoki and Shingo at they entered class to see their classmates staring out the windows.

" What's wrong?"

" There's some guy standing by the school gate. He looks like he's waiting for someone."

" This early?"

" School doesn't end in a few hours time too, I wonder who it is."

They checked on who it is as Naoki and Shingo flinched.

" It's Eiji-san!"

" Aichi, you couldn't have told him about our school, right?"

" Well, yes. He said he wanted to fight me again so I did say he could come over for club activities. I did tell him the time too but I didn't think he would be this excited to fight again."

" That or you're just too dense..." Naoki muttered

" Huh?"

" Nothing. You should tell him to go back to his home first or something. Club activities don't start so soon, right?"

" Yeah, I should."

Aichi ran out of the classroom as Naoki and Shingo kept watch. Aichi seemed to greet Eiji while Eiji nodded. He then took out a small white box and handed it to Aichi as Aichi shook his head to reject it while Eiji just gave it to him despite his denial. Aichi then seemed to chat with Eiji a little longer before heading back to class again.

" I think I'm starting to not like the guy either."

" You think someone like that has an ulterior motive in befriending Sendou-kun?"

" Maybe. Kai said he's been acting weird ever since he met him and fainted that day. Something about that Nochizawa doesn't seem right. We better keep our eyes on him."

" Well, if you say it like that..."

Aichi entered the classroom again with the box as he sat down on his seat. Some of his classmates, including Naoki and Shingo surrounded him.

" So what's in the box?"

" Something he called the 'Augma' or something. He said that instead of virtual reality, it uses augmented reality without needing to 'full-dive'. I honestly don't understand but he insisted on me having it."

He opened the box to see a white wearable device while Naoki picked up another white device inside the box.

" What's this?"

" It's for something called Ordinal Scale. He said that if I hold onto it while going into Ordinal Scale, it becomes my weapon."

" For literally fighting?! No way!"

" I don't think I'd want to use it though. It doesn't feel right. I'll just return it to him later."

" I guess so."

The bell rang as they went back to their seats while Aichi kept the box away. A few hours later, school ended as Aichi and the others went into the clubroom to see Eiji already sitting inside.

" Eiji-san!"

" That was fast..."

" Hey, Aichi. How's the Augma I gave you?"

" About that... I'd like to give it back to you. I really can't accept such a gift."

" Well, you won't know unless you try. Here, I'll put it on for you."

" It really is fine!"

Eiji had already placed the Augma on Aichi as he activated it. Suddenly, a white haired girl popped up in front of Aichi as he squeaked in surprise.

" Aichi?"

" Oh, sorry. Yuna, greet him properly. Don't come so up close when he just activated the Augma."

" Sorry, sorry! I'm Yuna!"

" She's an idol in the Augmented Reality. Unless you wear an Augma, you can't see her."

" I-I see... Oh! I-I'm Aichi Sendou."

" So you're Aichi. Eiji's told me a lot about you."

" I-I see..."

" Who's Yuna?"

" As I've explained, without the Augma, Yuna can't be seen. And besides, I came today not just to give you the Augma, Yuna has a request."

" Huh?"

" Let's be friends!"

" Friends...?"

" Yeah, friends! You can't?"

" N-No, I'll be grateful to be your friend."

" I was really surprised. Yuna usually only goes by her program. But today, she suddenly said she wanted to make friends with you, so I came by to hand you the Augma."

" I see."

" We're going to have so much fun together!"

" Y-Yeah..."

However, when he looked at Eiji and Yuna again, a vision came for a split second as he saw the same people from his dream. His eyes widened as he started to clench his head.

" Aichi?! Hey, Aichi!"

 _" Why am I having these memories...?! I can't remember! When did I have them...?!"_ Aichi thought

He snapped back to reality as he tried to regain his composure.

" Aichi, are you really alright? You're not having those exhaustion shutdowns again from last year, are you?"

" No... I really am fine..."

" Sit down and rest at the table for a bit then, Sendou-kun."

" Yeah..."

The door opened as Kai entered and he ran over to Aichi when he saw his pale face.

" Are you okay?! Your face is so pale!"

" I'm okay... I'm just a little tired..."

" You'll have to go back home. Ishida and the others can handle the club by themselves."

" But..."

" No buts. We're going back."

Kai carried Aichi on his back while getting Aichi's bag as Yuna ran over to them.

" But we just became friends!"

" Yuna, let him rest. We can hang out next time."

" Huh? Yuna?"

Aichi removed his Augma as he wore it on Kai and Kai showed a similar reaction to Aichi as he staggered backwards a little.

" Who's this girl?!"

" An Augmented Reality Idol, Yuna." Eiji replied

" You can't see her without the Augma I wore on you... Sorry, Yuna... Maybe next time..."

" Alright..."

" She said alright."

Aichi nodded as he laid his head on Kai's shoulder and slept. Kai made sure Aichi was properly on his back before going towards the door.

" Then I'll be going now."

" Yeah, take care of Aichi."

" Yeah."

Kai walked back to his apartment as he looked at the Augma.

 _" I'll look up on it once we're back in the apartment..."_ Kai thought

Once he was back in the apartment, Kai took off his and Aichi's shoes before carefully lying Aichi down on the bed. He then tried out the Augma as he then contacted Ren again.

" Hello?"

" Ren, do you know anything about a device called 'Augma'?"

" Oh, that? It's pretty popular lately. Want me to explain?"

" No. Aichi received it from Nochizawa. And the AR idol is called Yuna too. Ring any bells?"

" Yuna... Oh, that AR idol. She's been popular lately and that makes people want to use Augma more."

" Get me one of those things. I'll return this Augma I have to Aichi first and I'll use another one to search up on what I want to find out."

" You're curious about the coincidence, huh... Why are these Eiji and Yuna involved with Augma? And why is Yuna, who's supposingly dead, in the AR world, right?"

" Just do it."

" Leave that to me. I'll have it delivered by tomorrow morning."

" Yeah."

Kai put down the call as he removed the Augma and placed it on the bedside table. Aichi woke up after that as Kai helped him to sit up.

" I'll need to shower you since you're still so weak."

" No, it's fine... I don't want to trouble you for so long..."

" I'm worried about you, Aichi. Not just that... I... I love you."

" Huh...?"

Kai leaned in and kissed Aichi on his lips as Aichi also closed his eyes and returned the kiss. They broke the kiss after awhile.

" Please... If there's anything that worries you, you've gotta tell me. I can't take always having to see you suffer."

" Yes... I love Kai-kun too, so I will..."

" That's good. Now, let's go take a shower together."

" Yeah..."

Kai carried Aichi and got the Augma as well as he settled Aichi in the bathroom while getting the tub ready. He then placed the Augma beside the sink as he helped Aichi to take off his clothes before taking off his own clothes. He then helped Aichi to wash his hair and body before settling him inside the warm bathtub and also washed himself before going into the bathtub.

" How are you feeling?"

" Just a little tired... But I'm fine..."

" Come here."

Aichi shifted himself a little as he leaned on Kai's chest and closed his eyes.

" So warm..."

" Rest a little while then."

When he didn't receive any response, he looked down at Aichi to see him already sleeping soundly as he sighed. Suddenly, he felt a presence as he wore the Augma and Yuna popped up.

" You?!"

" You two sure are getting close."

" W-What are you doing here?! What's a girl even doing in a bathroom with boys?!" Kai whispered, blushing a little

" But I was worried and just when we became friends too..."

" I don't care whether you're a person from Augmented Reality or not, you can't just barge inside here when we don't wear the Augma."

" But you were quite smart. You could sense my presence without the Augma."

" I just sense it... And when did you get in?!"

" The whole time. From when you confessed to now. I saw everything."

" E-Everything?!"

" Yeah, from top to bottom."

" J-Just get out of here already!"

" I got it... Don't need to be so rude."

Yuna disappeared after that as Kai sighed in relief. He got out off the bathtub while being careful to not wake Aichi as he dried themselves off and wore their clothes before turning the lights off and heading to bed.

* * *

Meanwhile, Yuna appeared from behind a tree near the apartment where Eiji was at as she told everything.

" Yuna, I already told you. No going into the bathroom."

" I know but I was worried."

" Don't worry. The three of us will be back together soon like last time." Eiji muttered out the last part

" Like last time?"

" It's nothing."

 _" I'll fulfill our promise. The three of us will be together again once Yuna is revived."_ Eiji thought

" Let's head back now."

" Yeah!"

They headed back to their city as the night deepened.

* * *

And that's the end of this chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and of course, there are spoilers from the SAO movie from chapter 2 onwards, so read with caution if you don't want to be spoiled! I'll see everyone in the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

Hello, everyone! This is a new chapter! Chapter 2! I hope everyone will enjoy this new chapter! Without further ado, let's start!

Normal POV

The next morning, there was a knock on the door as Kai woke up first to the noise as he made sure Aichi was still sleeping soundly before heading to the door. He opened the door as he saw a box on the floor. He picked it up and headed back inside the apartment to check on it as he saw the Augma inside with a letter as he sighed, knowing it was from Ren. He got his phone out and called him.

 _" Oh hey, Kai! So you received my letter?"_

" Yes, I did but it's 6 in the morning, Ren."

 _" Well, I did say that I'll deliver it by morning."_

" Aichi's still sleeping. If you had woken him up, I will go to your place and slap you up your head."

 _" Oh, does that mean you finally confessed?"_

" ... Yeah. But what do you mean by finally?"

 _" Because it took you guys so long! Everyone knows you and Aichi-kun like each other! We even stuffed you two in the storeroom to make you guys confess!"_

" Shut up, Ren. I didn't appreciate the fact that you did that to us either. I'm going back to sleep now so don't disturb us again got it?"

 _" Yes... Have fun~"_

Kai immediately hung the call up as he sighed and headed back to sleep. A few hours later, he woke up again as he realized that it was already close to afternoon as he went to get ready and prepare lunch. While he was doing that, Aichi woke up as he sat up on the bed.

" Hey."

" Good morning, Kai-kun..."

" It's already close to afternoon. I'm making for us lunch, go get yourself ready and then we can head to Card Capital."

" Yeah... Thank you..."

Aichi headed to the bathroom as he got ready while Kai set the table. Aichi came out from the bathroom as soon as he put their plates down.

" Come and eat."

" Yeah."

Aichi sat down at the table as Kai sat down beside him and they started eating.

" How are you feeling today?"

" Yeah, I'm much better now. Thank you for taking care of me, Kai-kun."

" No problem."

Kai licked off a grain of rice on Aichi's lip as he blushed. Kai just smirked as they continued their lunch before heading off while trying out their Augma and holding hands.

" I didn't think you would get the Augma too, Kai-kun. Is it that interesting?"

" Not really. I was just curious."

" But how did you get it?"

" If I told you the truth, Ren had delivered it this morning. He basically almost disrupted your sleep."

" It's fine but why did he give you the Augma?"

" I don't know. I mean, you know Ren."

" Oh... Yeah, I think I can imagine a scenario..."

They entered Card Capital to see their friends as they noticed something different.

" Hello! Everyone has an Augma too?"

" Yeah... Ren delivered it this morning at 6..." Naoki yawned

" He sent everyone an Augma at that timing?" Kai ask, eyebrow twitching

" Yeah... I'm so sleepy..."

 _" That idiot..."_ Kai thought

" So, do you guys have news or something?"

" What news?"

" That."

Miwa motioned to their hands as they saw that they were still holding their hands and blushed.

" Shut up."

" I knew everything wouldn't be quiet for one week over at your place."

" Whatever."

They headed to a table as they continued to use their Augma a little while longer.

" What's this? SAO Boss Monsters have been spawning at locations where the special events for Ordinal Scale is being held?" Kamui read

" SAO?"

Kai's eyes widened as he searched for the same article and read it.

 _" No way... Is that why those two are related to Augma? There must be more as to why only SAO Boss Monsters have been spawning in the special event area... Looks like I'll have to figure it out at the next area of spawn for Ordinal Scale."_ Kai thought

" Ordinal Scale does sound like fun. Hey, let's all go tonight! It's at 9 tonight and plus it's a weekend."

" Well, it does sound interesting when I think about it now. How about Kai-kun?"

" Yeah."

" Then it's decided! Let's all meet up here before the next location is given! And then let's go try it out!"

" Yeah!"

" But for now, more Vanguard! Aichi, I'll fight you!"

" Sure, Naoki-kun. Then I'll be heading over to the Standing Fight Table."

" Yeah."

Aichi stood up and went to fight Naoki as Kai continued to ponder about it but he left the thought aside as he and Miwa also started to fight.

~ At night~

They were now heading to the location before the spawn after dinner as Kai's eyebrow twitched.

" Why are we going there with this idiot?"

" That's mean, Kai! I'm interested in playing Ordinal Scale too! And plus I have transport so be more grateful! I thought being together with Aichi-kun would've changed you to be more nicer!"

" Shut up, Ren. I will kick you out of here if you say that again."

" C-Calm down, Kai-kun..."

" Yeah, if Ren didn't come, we would've been exhausted before we could even fight."

" I guess so. Too bad Misaki-san and Kamui-kun couldn't come with us today."

" Well, Shin-san broke his back again, so she had to close the shop herself and Kamui had a curfew too."

" We've arrived."

" Thanks, Tetsu! Just wait for us here too, okay?"

" Yeah. Have fun, you guys."

" Yeah!"

They got out of the car as they looked around.

" There really are a lot of people."

" And they're staring at us... Well, we did have a fancy drive here..."

" Sorry, that's the only car we have."

" And other cars?"

" Trust me, they're way more fancier."

" I-I see..."

" We should start now, it's close to 9 after all."

" Yeah!"

" Ordinal Scale, activate!"

Their surroundings and clothes changed as they looked at them.

" Woah, cool!"

" Guess most of our weapons are swords, huh..."

" I see some snipers around too."

" So we can either use swords, maces, spears, daggers, shields or guns, huh... Interesting."

" It's 9."

There was a burst of light as a monster appeared from it. Kai overheard two players talking about it.

 _" An SAO boss monster, Samurai Lord, huh..."_ Kai thought

" Yuna!"

Kai looked up to see Yuna being projected by a drone as they were given buffs through her song.

" Then that Yuna girl is the one you met with that Nochizawa?" Naoki ask

" Yeah."

" Dodge it!"

They had to dodge a snake whip coming from Samurai Lord as they ran away.

" How are we supposed to fight that gigantic thing?!"

" I don't know! But they said that if we run out of HP, there's a harsh penalty!"

" Seriously?!"

" Then we have to fight it!"

Naoki charged at Samurai Lord as he managed to land a hit.

" Naoki-kun! Dodge to your left!"

Naoki did as told before the snake whip could land a hit as he got back to the others.

" That was a bad idea, Muscle brain!"

" Oh yeah?! At least I can do better than you!"

" Stop arguing! It's coming!"

They dodged the katana attack this time as they tried to land more hits before the same guy from who Kai overheard from tripped and fell from trying to land a hit. Aichi dashed in and immediately got him out from the katana's range as they continued to run.

" Thank you!"

" Jeez, Kirito-kun! That was dangerous!" The same girl from before exclaimed

" I'm just not used to it! AR and VR are really different!"

" That's because you don't exercise much!"

" Aichi!"

" Kai-kun!"

" That was dangerous! What were you thinking?!"

" I'm sorry! I just had to!"

" That's no excuse!"

Suddenly, another player came in between them and fired his cannon as Samurai Lord dodged the attack and it headed straight for Yuna.

" Oh no!"

The attack was reflected by Eiji as he landed right after the cannon hit Samurai Lord.

" Eiji-san?!"

" Tanks follow me and block its attacks!"

Eiji charged towards Samurai Lord as he landed a few blows as Aichi took a chance and started running towards Samurai Lord.

" Aichi!"

As he landed a few more blows, Samurai Lord was defeated as it exploded in fireworks. Aichi then noticed the jump in his rank that had turned to 13.

" Huh? That shouldn't be possible..."

" Aichi!"

Aichi turned to see his friends running towards him as they surrounded him to congratulate him.

" You did it, Aichi!"

" That was amazing, Sendou-kun!"

" No, everyone helped too."

Yuna floated down as she went beside Aichi.

" Congratulations! Now, this is your reward!"

Yuna leaned in and kissed him on the cheek as the others flinched, Aichi flushed red and Kai had a tick mark on his head.

" And so, today's MVP is Aichi Sendou! Congratulations! Thank you for coming today, everyone!"

Yuna disappeared after that as Eiji also left.

" That was surprising..."

" Y-Y-Yeah..."

" Our ranks seem to have increased. Let's go check on them."

" Yeah."

They checked on their ranks while Aichi pondered about his own rank.

 _" The bonus rank only brings me up by a thousand and my rank was still so low, so why did it go up till 13 so suddenly?"_ Aichi thought

" Aichi?"

" Oh, it's nothing!"

" Hey, you guys."

Kirito and the others approached them.

" Oh, it's you."

" Yeah. Thanks for the save back there."

" Well, I couldn't help it. I had to help."

" But I'm surprised. Usually, your stamina shouldn't keep up with this tedious fight." Naoki said

" You're right. I wonder why..."

Ren tapped on Kai's shoulder as he turned to him in annoyance.

" Don't look at me like that! Besides that, he activated Psyqualia just now." Ren whispered

" What?!"

" I'm a user too, so I know. He probably fought well thanks to Blaster Blade."

" Is that so? I couldn't tell the difference."

" Blaster Dark told me. He would know that fighting style anywhere."

" I see..."

" But Aichi-kun doesn't know that, so keep it a secret for now."

" Yeah."

Meanwhile, Aichi was still chatting with Kirito and the others.

" You were good at fighting just now!" Asuna said

" Is that so? I really didn't know."

" No, that was some skill at work. You're quite amazing."

" Well, the tanks did help too. I'm Aichi Sendou."

" I'm Kazuto Kirigaya."

" I'm Asuna Yuuki."

" I'm Tsuboi Ryoutarou and this is my gang, the Furinkazen!"

" Yeah!"

" Nice to meet everyone. But that's a nice play with your name, Kirito-san."

" Huh? You knew?"

" Yeah. Yuuki-san called your name loudly too, so I heard it. It was a unique play of names to be honest. I wouldn't be able to come up with something like that."

" Thanks."

" Oh! And these are my friends."

" Naoki Ishida!"

" I'm Shingo Komoi."

" I'm Taishi Miwa!"

" Ren Suzugamori!"

" Hmph."

Aichi sighed as he lifted up his foot slightly.

" This is Toshiki Kai."

He stomped his foot on Kai's as Kai flinched and Aichi removed his foot.

" He's just a little socially awkward so he'll open up after awhile."

Sweat drop...

" Y-Yeah..."

" What was that for, Aichi...?!"

" Greet people properly! I won't repeat myself! Got it?!"

" Y-Yes..."

" I guess Aichi had enough, huh..." Miwa muttered

" We finally have someone to control Kai. That's great for us!"

" Yeah!"

And they got a punch to their heads by Kai as they winced.

" We should really go now though. We can't keep Tetsu-san waiting for us."

" Yeah."

" Then we'll see each other tomorrow after the next location for the next boss to spawn comes out?"

" Sure."

" Then see you guys again!"

" Yeah!"

They deactivated their Ordinal Scale as they ran back to the car and it drove them back home. Back at the apartment, Aichi laid down on the bed after taking a shower as Kai smiled.

" Don't lie down yet or you'll catch a cold."

" Yeah, I know... But it was so fun today..."

" I'm glad you enjoyed it."

" Yeah. Hey, Kai-kun."

" Yeah?"

" I... remember."

" Remember what?"

" That I went into SAO during a experiment at the hospital."

" You do...?"

" Yeah. When that boss monster spawned today, some of my memories came back."

" So, you remember...?"

" A bit. From when I met Eiji-kun and Yuna..."

" I see... What do you remember?"

" When I woke up in that world, I was at the Town of Beginnings. That's where I heard Yuna's singing nearby and went to check up on it. There, I met Yuna and Nautilus, who's Eiji-kun in real life. We got along well and they even helped me clear levels and bosses to get me to their peaceful home. I don't actually remember what other adventures we went on but... One day, Nautilus suggested we went to a flower garden in a level 50+ floor. And unconsciously, we stepped out of the safe zone, got surrounded by monsters and Yuna was... killed."

" There was nothing you could do about it. You three were surrounded after all."

" No. We had teleportation crystals but we couldn't use them. If we did, then Yuna could've lived."

" Like I said, it's no one's fault. I'm sure Yuna never blamed the both of you at all."

" I know... But I'm afraid that Eiji-kun might not. I'm sure he's using Ordinal Scale for something. My ranking right now is 13. It's not possible even with the bonus points since we just started and Eiji-kun was Rank 2. I'm sure Eiji-kun is somehow using the system to bring my rank up that high. He wants me to be with them like we promised."

" We can skip tomorrow's boss battle if you'd like."

" No. I have to face this and stop Eiji-kun. I don't know who's the true culprit behind this but at the very least, I should stop Eiji-kun before he makes a fatal mistake. I'm sure if Yuna was here, she might say that too."

" I'll be with you all the way then. I won't leave you again."

" Yeah. Thank you."

" No problem."

They kissed again before heading to bed as the next night soon arrived. Tetsu transported them to the location again as they saw Asuna and the others at the entrance.

" Yuuki-san!"

" Oh, it's you guys and please, just Asuna is fine."

" Oh, okay. Kirito-san isn't here today?"

" Yeah. He had something to do so I came alone today."

" We should head in soon. It's almost 9."

" You guys go on ahead. We're still waiting for one of our members."

" Is it really alright?"

" Yeah."

" Alright then. Let's go together."

" Yeah!"

They headed to the venue as they looked around.

" Many people as always."

" We should start too."

" Yeah."

" Ordinal Scale, activate!"

Their surroundings and clothes changed as the clock hit 9 and the Boss Monster appeared.

" Storm Griffin." Aichi muttered

" I'm surprised you remember this much." Kai whispered

" Yeah, I am surprised myself too. Target its wings so that it can't take off into the skies to dive for an attack."

" Got it."

Yuna appeared again as she sang her song again while they got a buff.

" Now, Kai-kun!"

" Yeah!"

Both charged at Storm Griffin as they slashed its wings while it squirmed away from them. The song changed as they continued to battle the Storm Griffin.

" Snipers, shoot at its wings! Don't let it take flight! Tanks, block its breath attack! All close range weapons users follow us and hit it with all you've got!"

" Y-Yeah!"

They did as what Aichi told them to as he landed the last hit again and the Storm Griffin disappeared.

" We did it!"

Their surroundings turned back to normal as some of the players surrounded Aichi and Kai.

" That was fierce!"

" And nice directing! Thanks to you guys, we defeated it!"

" Y-Yeah... Thank you."

" You won again."

They turned to see Yuna landing as Aichi stepped back and got the bonus points.

" Please don't..."

" Well, I'll see you again, Aichi."

" Y-Yeah..."

Yuna disappeared as Aichi heaved a sigh of relief.

" Now that I think about it, Furinkazen never showed up in the end, did they?"

" Yeah... I wonder why..."

Ren answered a phone call as his eyes widened.

" Guys, we need to go now!"

" Y-Yeah!"

" Asuna-san, we'll see you again next time! Say 'hi' to Kirito-san for us too!"

" Y-Yeah! Sure! See you again!"

" Yeah!"

They got in the car as Tetsu drove them off.

" What's with the sudden rush?"

" Furinkazen has been hospitalised."

" What?!"

" Why?! They were fine when we met them!"

" They were attacked. I was wearing my own Augma when it happened. A player called 'Eiji' beat them up and was doing something to them when a boss monster suddenly spawned at the entrance. By the time I called help, he already disappeared."

" No way... Eiji-kun did that...?" Aichi muttered

" I called the ambulance and they're already being treated at the hospital. Want to head over?"

" Don't need to ask. Keep going."

" Yeah."

They arrived at the hospital as they headed into Tsuboi's room.

" Ryoutarou-san."

" Oh, you guys... How are my friends...?"

" They're all resting well. Is your arm alright?"

" Yeah, it's just twisted a little."

Aichi thought about something as he shut the door close behind them and headed to the window.

" Aichi?"

" I don't know how many of you know about this already but I'm going to be honest here. Ryoutarou-san, like you, I was an SAO victim."

" What?! That SAO incident?!"

" You were..."

" At least, I was indirectly one... Last year, I kept having exhaustion shutdowns from the battle with Link Jimer and the Seed that I kept going to the hospital, to the point that I had to be admitted there for a month. During that month, I was the tester for the then prototype Amusphere."

" The Amusphere...?!"

" When I full dived, because the device was still a prototype, I didn't have memories from reality and it got mixed up due to the many emotions and data in SAO. My memories overwrote itself in SAO and when I'm back in reality, it overwrites again and I remember all of my memories from reality once they bring me out of full dive. That's when I met Eiji-kun and Yuna, when she was still alive in that world."

" Wait a minute! Then Yuna is..."

" She's dead. She died in the SAO incident. Because we stepped out of the safe zone, she died. I don't know why she's projected as an AR idol now but now that I know that Eiji-kun is truly involved in something dangerous, I can't keep this quiet any longer. Ryoutarou-san, what did Eiji-kun do after he beat all of you up?"

" I don't know... The boss monster attacked me and I fainted. When I woke up... I can't remember anything from SAO."

" Can't remember anything from SAO?"

" Where's your Augma?"

" On the table."

" Do you mind if I borrow it? I want to ascertain something."

" Sure."

" Ren-san. Take his Augma and check it up for me."

" I got it."

" Then, we'll be leaving for you to get your rest. Don't worry, we'll handle this."

" It's fine. I'm sure there's nothing special in those memories anyway, must've all been bad memories after all."

" Don't say that. There are always good memories, even in the bad ones. Have a nice rest."

" Yeah."

They left the room as they exited the hospital and headed back home.

" Is this really alright with you?"

" What is?"

" Telling us about this."

" Yeah, it is. But it somehow became my own problem. Don't participate in Ordinal Scale. Until we find out what happened with Furinkazen, nobody should go near the boss monsters, even you guys, just to be safe."

" But what about you?"

" I'll investigate Ordinal Scale myself. I can't let Eiji-kun do whatever he wants anymore. I can't let him endanger more SAO survivors."

" But..."

" Please. This isn't that simple. I'm somewhat an SAO survivor myself and I was the one who's also closer to Eiji-kun and Yuna. I'll take the risk to find out the truth."

" Aichi..."

" If there's anything else, just message me. I'll be heading back home for now."

" We've arrived."

They got off from the car as it drove off and they separated while thinking about what Aichi said as Kai looked over to him.

" You say all that but you know I'm not letting you do this alone."

" I know. But I also don't want you guys to be endangered in something of my own issue. Please, Kai-kun."

" No, I'm not going to let you do this alone, alright?"

" Why?"

" Is there any other answers? It's because I love you, Aichi and I want to protect you."

" Kai-kun..."

They stopped walking as Kai caressed Aichi's cheek and kissed him as the night deepened.

* * *

And that's the end of this chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and I'll see everyone in the next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

Hello, everyone! This is a new chapter! Chapter 3! I hope everyone will enjoy this new chapter! Without further ado, let's start!

Normal POV

The next morning, Aichi and Kai woke up as they got ready while Kai made breakfast.

" I can't believe you persuaded me to stay at your place. You even called Mother."

" What? It's not like I'm going to let you go to the next spawn area alone. If you stay here, I can supervise you so that you won't do anything reckless."

" Kai-kun's so mean..." Aichi pouted

" How does wanting to protect you count as mean? Get your facts straight. I'm going with you for the next spawn area tonight no matter what."

" I got it..."

" But first, have your breakfast. You need to head to school."

" Yeah."

Aichi ate his breakfast as Kai escorted him to school. Once Aichi was inside the school, Kai headed back to his apartment as the school bell rang soon after.

~ Lunchtime~

Aichi got out his lunchbox that Kai made as he went to the roof to eat with Naoki and Shingo.

" Hey, Aichi. You're really going to do this alone?"

" Why are you suddenly asking?"

" Because it concerns us too! You wouldn't be involved in this if we'd realized about the experiment when you were hospitalized!"

" It's not your fault. I didn't know about the incident and signed up for it because VR interest me, so it's not your fault."

" But..."

Shingo was cut off when Aichi's phone rang as he picked up the call.

" Hello?"

 _" Hello, Aichi-kun. It's Ren. I scanned the Augma yesterday as you requested. The results were a little surprising. It seems that when the song Yuna sang yesterday changed, a special system in the Augma activates. It'll scan for any SAO memories in the survivors and extract it once their HP goes down to zero. That must be the cause of the memory loss and Furinkazen's not the only affected ones. Many SAO survivors have the same problem after playing Ordinal Scale."_

" Is that so? I see. Thank you, Ren-san."

 _" No problem. Do you need a ride tonight? I know you want to do this alone but I don't think anyone's assured to leave you alone."_

" I know. And thanks. But I don't think I'll need it. I'll see you next time then."

 _" Yeah."_

Aichi hung the call up just as the bell rang and they headed back to class. Once school ended a few hours later, Aichi saw Kai waiting by the school gate as he followed him back to his apartment.

" You seem troubled. Did Ishida and the others say something?"

" Yeah... I'm sure you know already about what it is but I'm not backing out of it no matter what. I have to face it."

" I will follow you tonight no matter what. But Aichi, just promise me you won't do anything reckless."

" Yeah."

As night came, Aichi and Kai barely managed to make it to the next spawn area as they activated Ordinal Scale and waited for the next boss to spawn.

" It's here."

" I see the guy you're looking for. Want me to follow you?"

" No. I'll do this myself."

" I got it."

Kai charged at the boss monster as Aichi walked over to Eiji.

" Eiji-kun. I remember and not just that, I found out what you're planning with Augma. Why are you doing this?"

" In SAO, we already promised to be together but Yuna couldn't survive to keep to it. So with this, Yuna will come back."

" You can't bring the dead back, Eiji-kun. If this keeps up, don't you think you're hurting Yuna more?"

" No. I know. This is what she wants. The three of us will be back together again."

" Eiji-kun..."

He saw Asuna approaching as he stepped away and hid behind a pillar while listening in on their conversation. When there was only three minutes left on the clock, the music changed as Aichi came out of hiding while gasping. Another portal opened up as a blue dragon hopped out.

" Pina!"

" What? You scared us!"

Kai watched the commotion as well as the little blue dragon transformed into a gigantic black dragon. Asuna ran over to try to aid Silica as Aichi pursed his lips.

" Are you really alright with this, Eiji-kun?"

" Yeah."

Eiji dashed over to Silica in the smoke and pushed her over as Aichi tightened his fist. Kai came running over to him admist the chaos.

" Aichi, what is-?!"

Kai was cut off by a kiss on his lips by Aichi as his cheeks turned rosy pink while Aichi broke the kiss.

" I'm sorry."

Aichi dashed towards Asuna, who was covering Silica, as he took the attack and his HP immediately dropped to zero. Kai gasped while Eiji's eyes widened.

" Aichi!"

 _" I'm sorry, Kai-kun... I'm sorry, Yuna... If this is the only way to make Eiji-kun open his eyes, then I'll..."_ Aichi thought

An orb came out of his Augma as it flew up and entered a drone. Aichi collapsed after that as Kai ran over to him.

" Aichi! Aichi, wake up!"

The dragon raised its claw to strike again as Asuna got hit while trying to defend again. This time, her HP went down to zero and an orb also came out of her Augma and flew into the drone as the time was up by the time Kazuto arrived as the monsters disappeared.

" Asuna!"

After trying to confront Eiji, only to be blocked by his sword, Kazuto stepped away as Eiji looked over to Aichi before quickly retreating after Yuna disappeared. Asuna was returned home after they'd confirmed that she was alright while Aichi was sent to the hospital after going unconscious. Kai waited outside his ward as the doctor came out after a few minutes of checking.

" Is Aichi alright?!"

" You are..."

" I am his friend!"

" I see. Has your friend had a history of having frequent faintings recently?"

" Well, last year and a few days ago but it stopped after that!"

" I don't know what exactly happened but mentally, he's still quite weak and after I checked, it seemed that his brain was scanned. I don't know why but the scan did some damage to it. So, some of his body functions have been affected too and he might be in a temporary coma."

" Why?! He was alright when he was with me!"

" But I don't think he himself knew that he was mentally drained yet, considering that you said that he had fainted a few days back. I can't be sure but until his condition improves, we have to keep him here for observations. You can visit him but not too much noise."

" Y-Yeah... Thank you..."

Kai entered the room quietly as he closed the door behind him while slowly walking over to the closed curtain. He opened the curtain as he saw Aichi with a breathing mask and was hooked on IV drips with a heart monitor also beside him.

" Aichi..."

Kai caressed Aichi's cheek as he pressed his forehead gently on his.

" I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."

After a few hours, it was now morning as the door opened and the others entered.

" What happened...? He was fine yesterday!"

" I don't know... Yesterday, I followed him to the spawn area and his HP went down to zero when he protected another player."

" So his brain was scanned for SAO memories..."

" What did you say...?"

" He told me not to tell anyone else. You see, Augma is being used to scan for SAO memories from survivors. When Yuna's song changes, that's when it happens. The song changed yesterday, didn't it?"

" It did... Why didn't you say this earlier?! I could've stopped him!"

" Could you? You know there's never stopping Aichi-kun once his mind is set."

Kai sat back on the chair again as he placed his hand on his forehead.

" You guys should head off to school for now. You don't want to be late."

" Well... Alright. We'll think of an excuse for him."

" Yeah."

They exited the room as Ren tapped on Kai's shoulder slightly before going to leave the room as well. He stopped when he reached the door.

" You know, Kai. I'm sure you realize this but that Eiji sounded like you when you accepted Reverse. Maybe Aichi-kun brought you with him yesterday because he knows that if he can't do anything to change Eiji, he's sure you can."

Ren opened the door and left as well as Kai leaned back on the chair to think about it. He looked over to Aichi as he grabbed his hand and squeezed it gently.

" Is that true...? Please wake up and tell me... I'm so confused now..."

Suddenly, Aichi's hand gave back a slight squeeze as Kai's eyes widened. He looked over Aichi to see him smiling slightly as he nodded.

" I will. Just wait for me."

As night fell again, Kai headed to the next spawn area after realizing it was nearby as he looked around after he arrived. He noticed Kazuto approaching him.

" Hey, did anything happen to Aichi?"

" Meaning?"

" He can't remember anything from SAO for example."

" Kirigaya Kazuto, am I right?"

" Yeah."

" I'm not sure whether he lost those memories but... The scan caused some damage to his brain and he's now in a coma. He already had past problems with frequent fainting so the doctors weren't that surprised."

" A coma...?!"

" I need to straighten things out with that Eiji guy. How did you even know about Aichi's involvement in SAO?"

" Sorry. Klein told me."

" Klein? Oh, that Furinkazen leader?"

" Yeah."

" It's fine. I was certain he would've spilled the beans long ago. So, Asuna Yuuki lost her memories?"

" Of SAO? Yeah. Do you know what's going on?"

" No. Even if Aichi is Eiji's friend, he'd just regained those memories, so he's not completely sure of what's Eiji's plans."

" He's Eiji Nochizawa's friend?!"

" In SAO. When he tested out for the Amusphere, he couldn't remember anything of when he used it. Like I said, he just started to remember and now this happens."

" I see..."

" Kirito."

They turned to see Asada walking over to them.

" Oh, let me introduce to you. This is Asada Shino, also known as Sinon. He's Toshiki Kai."

" Oh, the one you guys have been talking about. Nice to meet you."

" Same here."

" We should start now."

" Yeah."

" Ordinal Scale, activate!"

Their surroundings and clothes changed as the monster spawned soon after the clock hit 9.

" That's... The 18th floor boss, 'The Dire Tusk'! Wasn't today's boss from the 13th floor?!"

" What's going on here?!"

They were then told by Yui that the bosses were being spawned all over the place at a random shuffle.

" I see they're getting impatient."

" Anyway, we have to stop this boss first."

" Yeah!"

Kai charged in first before Kirito could warn him as he landed a few hits to Dire Tusk before he noticed the chain restraining it was being pulled out.

" Dodge it! It's gonna pull that thing out and hit you!"

Kai immediately jumped backwards and dodged just as the weapon was pulled out and swung around the battle area. It hit several people as one of them had a yellow orb extracted out from their Augma as Kai gasped and followed the direction to a drone. He saw Yui following it as he focused on the battle again. With Asada's support, Kazuto landed a final hit to Dire Tusk as it exploded in fireworks.

" You did it."

" But Eiji Nochizawa didn't show up..."

" And you were reckless too. There's no need for the rush."

" But if I don't hurry, Asuna's never going to regain her memories! I'll definitely make that guy pay and talk on how to return her memories!"

" Listen, Kirigaya. I'll handle Nochizawa. Your anger won't bring you anywhere. Aichi left this to me and I'll make sure to keep to it."

" You won't understand!"

" I understand. But what you're feeling now is completely different to mine... I once desired power and almost lost Aichi. He disappeared for the sake of the world and I promised to save him. To be blunt, we were sort of the same. We were all in a somewhat death game. And our death game started all because of me." Kai said, clenching his fist

" Kai, you..."

" There's no need for sympathy. I don't ask for it. I'll atone my sins by making sure to keep Aichi safe from now on. I failed already but I'll continue to take care of him as long as he's alive. You have Yuuki to take care of and I have Aichi. We go on different paths. I want Nochizawa to realise his mistake just like I did."

" I got it. We'll do whatever we want. By the way, could you tell me the address of the hospital Aichi's in?"

" What of it?"

" I want to go there for a little while."

Kai kept silent as he turned and walked away. A few moments later, Kazuto got a message from Kai about the address as he and Asada headed somewhere else first to discuss about what happened.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kai arrived back at the hospital as he headed to Aichi's ward and opened the curtains. He set up the extra bed beside Aichi as he took care of him while trying to check on signs of whether Aichi was regaining consciousness soon when he spotted a ticket lying a little under Aichi's pillow.

 _" Why didn't I see this earlier?"_ Kai thought

He pulled the ticket out as a note also dropped out and he picked it up. He examined the ticket first as he gasped.

" Yuna's concert?!"

He opened the note as he read it.

' I don't know whether you heard me just now or even a few portions of what I'd said. But if you can wake up before Yuna's concert, I want you to come. That way, you can watch Yuna's revival as we scan the whole stadium from the SAO survivors and bring Yuna back. And then, the three of us will be together forever. -Eiji'

" He came?! Aichi, any sign is fine! Tell me! Did Nochizawa really come over here?!"

Aichi's finger twitched a little as Kai heard the heart monitor skip a beat.

" He did, didn't he?! He couldn't have gone far! I'll go catch up to him!"

" Wait."

Kai's eyes widened as he looked up to see a hooded white haired girl.

" Yuna?!"

" Yeah. I just want to say that it's no use. You need to be at least a rank below Eiji to beat him."

" Rank 3? But that's..."

" Right now, Eiji's using a system to make Aichi's rank 3. But if you can surpass that, I'm sure you can help and defeat Eiji."

" I see... But why are you telling me this? Aren't you just an AR idol?"

" Eiji remembered. My dream. That idol is just my dream and I'm the real consciousness of Yuna."

" Real consciousness?"

" That's right. And if Aichi's memories returned, the scan would never exist and he'll be back to normal."

" How do I do that?!"

" It really depends. I can't tell you yet."

" But..."

" Yu... na..."

Kai gasped as Aichi started to open his eyes.

" Is... that... you...?"

Kai took out Aichi's Augma from the drawer as he wore it on him and Aichi's vision soon adjusted to see Yuna.

" Yu... na... I'm... sorry... I... couldn't... stop... him..."

" It's fine, Aichi. You did your best. Just rest."

" If... we... didn't... go... out... from the... safe... zone... that day... you could've..."

" It's no one's fault. It was probably fate."

" I'm... so happy... to have... remembered... again... I got... to see... you again... too... I'm... really... happy..."

" Me too. Now, go back and rest. You can't wake up so soon."

Aichi nodded slightly as he turned to Kai.

" I... leave... the... rest... to you... Kai-kun... I'm... sure you... can do... it..."

" Leave it to me. Like she said, you still need rest. So, go back to sleep. Once I get those memories back, you'll be fine again."

" Yeah..."

Aichi closed his eyes and fell sound asleep again as Kai sighed in relief.

" He shouldn't have remembered but it must be his will keeping his memories from fading away."

" Of course he'll do that. But you should stop, Aichi... You're already mentally exhausted as you are. I promise to give those memories back to you, so wait for me."

" Then, I'll leave Aichi's happiness to you after all this is settled. If you bully him, I won't forgive you!"

" That's a demand that I'll make sure to keep to."

" Yeah! I should leave soon. You have guests coming after all."

Yuna disappeared as Kai removed Aichi's Augma and put it back into the drawer with the ticket and note. The door soon opened as the curtains were parted and Kai spotted Kazuto and Asada entering.

" Sorry for coming in this late."

" It's fine. I was planning to call the doctor over too. Aichi woke up for a little while just now."

" I'll do that. I'll leave you guys to have a talk first."

" Yeah."

Asada left as Kazuto sat on the chair on the other side of the bed.

" So what did he say when he woke up?"

" Nothing much. Other than apologising that he couldn't stop Nochizawa."

" I see..."

The two stayed silent for awhile as Kazuto sighed.

" There were many memories from SAO with me and Asuna... We even promised to see the shooting stars at a place I promised to bring her to once we came back to the real world, camp out there and even promised to buy presents for each other... Now that she doesn't remember..."

" You're not thinking of giving up, are you?"

" No. Not yet. I promised Asuna and I'm not going to back out."

Kirito took out a ring and looked at it.

" Your present for her?"

" Yeah. I'm sure you do that for Aichi too, right?"

" I... made it that obvious?" Kai ask, blushing a little

" A little. When you talked about protecting him to atone for your sins, I figured as much."

" I guess Miwa's a little bit on the mark..."

" Huh?"

" About me being unable to hide my feelings for him. Well, we just confessed to each other a few nights ago. According to our friends, we've liked each other ever since we first met but we were both so stubborn and convinced ourselves that the other party didn't have the same feelings."

" That's where personalities got similar, huh... Well, it's almost the same for me and Asuna anyway so I can't complain."

" Is that so?"

" Yeah. Have you ever thought of getting presents for Aichi? It's a little obvious you're not the romantic type."

" Well... During Valentine's, we did give each other chocolates but I guess we thought of that as friendship chocolates. Hm... You might be right, I should get something for him."

The heart monitor skipped a beat as Kai smirked.

" I won't take 'no' for an answer, Aichi."

" You can tell?"

" Somewhat. Then it's decided. I'll go get something for him but I won't tell him what."

At that time, the doctor entered as they exited the ward while waiting for the results.

" So what did you guys talk about?"

" Nothing much. We should go now. Let's go, Sinon."

" Y-Yeah..."

They left as the doctor came out after a few minutes.

" Good news. It seems that his condition is improving and if he can wake up fully tomorrow, it can be safe to assume that we can release him from the hospital soon."

" Then he doesn't need the equipments anymore?"

" Well, he still needs a little more help with breathing but other than that, until tomorrow once he wakes up, we can remove the other equipments other than the breathing equipment."

" Right, thank you, doctor."

The doctor nodded as Kai went into the ward again to sleep beside Aichi. He turned off the lights and laid down on the extra bed as he patted Aichi's head gently.

" You'll be just fine once you wake up tomorrow. Don't worry. Good night."

He kissed Aichi's cheek and went to sleep as a small smile graced Aichi's face and the night deepened.

* * *

And that's the end of this chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and I'll see everyone in the next chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

Hello, everyone! This is a new chapter! Chapter 4! I hope everyone will enjoy this new chapter! Without further ado, let's start!

Normal POV

The next morning, Eiji was using his Augma to project a scenery while Yuna observed the jar in her hands while he hummed his tune and read his book.

" Hey, Eiji. Why isn't Aichi here yet?"

" He can't come."

" Why? We promised to hang out, right?"

" He's... resting in the hospital."

" Hospital?! Is it because of last time?! Is he still sick?!"

" Calm down, Yuna. Well, it's something like that. I don't think he might be able to make it for your concert. I'm sure he wanted to see it quite badly too."

" Too bad... I was looking forward to seeing him too..."

" Don't worry. Once he recovers, we can hang out again."

" I hope so. I still want to find out more about him."

" Me too."

He took out his deck case as he took out the deck and fanned it out.

" Vanguard, huh..."

" That's the deck you bought when you met him, right?"

" Yeah. It's interesting but not like Ordinal Scale."

" I guess so... I sure wish I could play it too."

" I'm sure you will soon, it's just a matter of time."

" Hey, Eiji. Can we go see Aichi today?"

" Hm... Why not? Maybe tonight."

" Yeah!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Kai had woken up and had called the doctor when he saw that Aichi had woken up before him as the doctor came out soon after.

" His condition is stabilised and we took out the equipments I told you about yesterday. And we replaced the breathing mask with the breathing tube so he won't have trouble having to eat but the IV drips have to stay for now. Just make sure he gets plenty of rest, eats his medicine and don't let him stay awake for too long."

" Yes, thank you very much."

" You're welcome. You can head inside to see him."

" Yes."

Kai went into the ward as he saw Aichi sitting up on the bed and smiling at him.

" Kai-kun..."

" Aichi!"

Kai ran over and hugged him gently as he looked over Aichi.

" I'm glad you feel better now."

" Yeah... I'm just a little tired, that's all..."

" You just keep resting. Leave everything to me."

" Yeah, I know... My SAO memories are already disappearing again... Kai-kun, please help Eiji-kun for me..."

" Yeah, I will. Just wait here for me. I'll come back after finishing a few bosses tonight. I'll ask someone to take care of you while I'm at it."

" Thank you..."

" No problem."

Kai took out his phone and dialled a number as Ren answered the call.

" Ren. The system for Augma might've changed a little. Yesterday, the AR idol Yuna wasn't around when another survivor lost his memories. Look it up for me."

 _" Interesting. I'll have to ask Chris-kun for help on this. How's Aichi-kun?"_

" He's awake but his memories of SAO are fading. Is Leon in Japan? Could you ask him and the twins to take care of Aichi for me?"

 _" Is that so? So, you're that against me to take care of Aichi-kun. Well, I can't be sure whether he's here but I'll try to contact him and I'll tell you later."_

" Yeah."

Kai hung the call up as he patted Aichi's head.

" It's alright. Just have your rest."

" Yeah... I love you..."

" Me too."

They kissed a little before releasing the kiss as there was a knock on the door and a nurse delivered Aichi's lunch and medicine. The nurse exited the ward as Kai carefully fed Aichi his lunch bit by bit before letting him swallow his medicine and lying back down on the bed.

" I'll go get my own lunch after you sleep. So rest and don't worry about me."

" I want to hold your hand until I sleep..."

" Are you a child?" Kai teased

" D-Don't be mean...!" Aichi pouted

Kai chuckled as he held firmly onto Aichi's hand while Aichi turned to him and got a little closer to the warmth coming from Kai's hand as he smiled.

" So warm..."

Soon, he drifted into a peaceful sleep as Kai made sure he was fast asleep before adjusting Aichi to make sure the breathing and IV tubes weren't disrupted before standing up to head to buy his own lunch to bring back to the ward to eat. He kissed Aichi's cheek.

" Sleep tight."

Kai left the ward after that as he was waiting for his food at the hospital cafeteria when his phone rang.

" Hello, Ren?"

 _" I managed to contact them. You can tell them about the situation later."_

" Why didn't you say anything?"

 _" It's more fun to keep it a secret~!"_

" This is not funny, Ren. I want you to explain to them immediately."

 _" Yes... Kai's such a spoilsport..."_

" Shut up."

Kai hung the call up before Ren could say anything more as he sighed. He soon got his lunch as he headed back to the ward as he quietly ate while keeping watch on Aichi. An hour later, Leon, Jillian and Sharlene entered quietly as Kai signalled them to the extra seats.

" We heard of the situation. We'll provide as much help as we can."

" Thanks. I'm going to get rid of the SAO bosses spawning at random with Kirigaya tonight so that we can prevent lesser casualties."

" Why can't you just put it up online about the danger?"

" Kirigaya tried it this morning and many didn't believe him. We don't have much of a choice."

" I see."

Kai got a message from Kazuto through his Augma as he read it.

' I've got a few spots confirmed for the spawns. I'll come fetch you at 8 to go to the first one.'

Kai replied as Kazuto soon messaged again.

' How's Aichi?'

' Feeling better. What about Yuuki?'

' Not really well. I tried to help her remember but she had difficulty.'

' I see. Well, see you tonight.'

' Yeah.'

The screen for the message turned off as he spotted Leon and the others looking at him with confused and curious eyes.

" Oh, it's Augma's feature. I was messaging Kirigaya. I have Aichi's here if you want to try it. He wouldn't mind."

Kai took out Aichi's Augma from the drawer as he handed it to Leon while the three inspected it. Leon wore it as he was a little surprised by the screens showing.

" Is it really alright to wear this...? Sendou has many unread messages..."

" Let me see. Here, use mine."

They exchanged the Augmas as Kai checked Aichi's messages, which he had long suspected was Naoki and the others, as he replied them.

" It's nothing. They're all from Ishida and the others."

" Oh."

" Well, they were worried and I did forget to tell them that Aichi was awake, so..."

" It's fine."

" Have you guys had lunch?"

" Yeah. We had some lunch nearby before coming over."

" I see. Then I'll leave Aichi to you tonight."

" Yeah."

After a few more hours, Kai got ready to leave after making sure Aichi had taken his dinner as he patted his head.

" I'll be going now. If you feel uncomfortable anywhere, just tell Leon and the others, alright?"

" Yeah... You be careful too, Kai-kun..."

" Yeah."

Kai wore his Augma as he walked out of the ward and headed downstairs to see Kazuto waiting for him on his motorbike.

" Hey."

" You're early."

" I did message you but I guess you didn't see. The boss spawn areas today are a little further so we should start as early as possible."

" I see. I just wore my Augma, so I didn't know. Then let's go."

" Yeah, get on."

He threw a helmet to Kai as he caught it and wore it. He got on the motorbike and Kirito drove off. Meanwhile, Aichi was busy catching up with Leon and the others when Leon sighed.

" Are you trying to stay awake until Kai comes back?"

" Huh?"

" Kai told you to rest. So you should listen to him."

" I know but..."

" Just rest. He'll come back safe and sound so don't worry."

" Yeah..."

They helped Aichi lie back down on the bed as he slowly fell asleep when the door opened and Eiji entered and looked at Leon and the others while blinking.

" You are?"

" Eiji Nochizawa."

" Sendou's friend?"

" Yeah. I'm just coming for a short visit."

" ... Then sit down."

Eiji nodded as he sat down and looked over to Aichi.

" How long have you known him?"

" About a few weeks."

" We've never really heard him talking about you but maybe we missed it in a conversation. So where did you meet him?"

" Somewhere out of this city. Well, it's a little complicated."

" You use those Augma things too?"

" Yeah. It's quite interesting."

They went silent after that as it lasted for an hour with frequent questions from Leon before Eiji left.

" Why did you let him stay here, Leon-sama?! Ren Suzugamori said that Aichi Sendou's in this state because of him!"

" Yeah! You could've let us handle him!"

" It's no use. He has something around his neck and I'm afraid that's something we don't want to encounter. So stay calm. Since he did no harm to Sendou this time, just leave it be."

" Leon-sama... We got it..."

Leon nodded as he continued to stare at the door before going back to taking care of Aichi. At the hospital entrance, Eiji took out his phone to contact someone before hanging up the call.

" Eiji?"

" It's nothing."

" Who were those three just now anyway? They were rude to keep asking questions when we're just visiting Aichi."

" It's fine, Yuna. It's just a matter of time before we get rid of them too. I won't let anyone interfere with the three of us reuniting again."

He left the hospital after that.

* * *

An hour later, Kai and Kazuto were now fighting the last of the bosses spawning at the wolf sent out spikes and it hit Kazuto.

" Kirigaya!"

As his HP continued to drop, he heaved a sigh of relief when it stopped just a few inches before zero as the spikes retracted and they dealt the last hits to the wolf and it exploded in fireworks.

" We did it..."

" Yeah..."

They suddenly heard clapping as they turned to see Eiji.

" Good job. Seems like you've finally got a grasp of Ordinal Scale, Black Swordsman."

" You!"

" Kirigaya!"

Kazuto charged at Eiji as he was thrown back by Eiji and he hit the ground after seeing a device around his neck.

" Kirigaya!"

Kai ran towards Kazuto to make sure he was alright. Eiji looked around and made sure that the commotion made people leave the area as he took something else out. Kazuto saw it as his eyes widened.

" Kai, look out!"

Before Kai could turn, he was stabbed on his back by a short knife as his eyes widened.

" Kai!"

" Thanks for taking care of Aichi all this time. I'll take over from here so you can stand down now, forever."

" Damn you!"

" Then, I'll see you tomorrow. I can't wait, Black Swordsman."

Eiji went off after that as Kazuto quickly called the ambulance while trying to stop the bleeding and Kai was quickly brought to the hospital. And by catching the wrong timing, Aichi had been awake after a nightmare as he caught wind of what had happened.

" Why did this happen...?"

" I'm sorry. I couldn't react fast enough and Eiji Nochizawa..."

" Eiji-kun did that...? What did the doctor say...?"

" He lost quite a lot of blood and his brain was deprived of both oxygen and blood after his heart stopped for a bit. The stab wound was deep and it almost reach his heart... There's no telling what would happen within this few hours..."

Aichi slowly looked down at his lap as he clenched his fist after remembering his nightmare.

" I... Was afraid this would happen... I always had nightmares that would come true sometimes... So I had been hoping that this nightmare that I had just now wouldn't come true..."

" I'm really sorry..."

" It's fine. Can I be left alone for a bit?"

" But..."

" Please."

" Alright..."

Kazuto exited the room with Leon and the others as Aichi clenched his fist on the blanket. He opened the drawer beside his bed as he took out his Augma and used the messaging app to contact Eiji.

' So you would go this far...? Just for that promise...?'

' Yes. It's all because of these survivors that this happened.'

' But Kai-kun's innocent...'

' He and his friends are trying to steal you away from us.'

' Steal? You call that 'steal'? Those are my friends and he is the person I love. How many more victims do you want to create before you're satisfied?'

' As long as we're back together again, I don't care what happens.'

' ... We might be the same, for the wrong reasons.'

' What do you mean?'

' If you want to continue to hurt my friends and endanger other survivors, I won't go back. My memories from that time has already long faded so I don't see the reason why to reunite now.'

' I will return those memories, I promise. Then we won't have to bother about others anymore.'

' I'll tell you one thing about me that I've never said before. I don't care what happens to me. As long as my friends, Kai-kun, can have a future...'

' What are you getting at?'

' If you will continue to steal people's future, then... I don't mind dying right now. I would also die in the stead for Yuna if I can turn back time. But I can't. Now that Kai-kun's in this state, all I want is for him to live. I don't mind giving my life to him.'

' Don't do anything reckless! You're in no condition to do anything!'

' Would Yuna like this too? What you've done is enough... I won't see you anymore but I can meet Yuna there. I'm sure Kai-kun will try to follow but I want you to change at least before this happens. If you'd just realized what wrong you're doing, then this wouldn't have happened... Goodbye.'

He took off his Augma before Eiji could reply as he started to stand up while removing his IV drip. He slowly staggered towards the door as he opened it. Leon and the others weren't around as he went to the ward Kazuto said Kai was in as he opened it but saw no nurse and entered it. He shut and locked the door before heading over to the closed curtains.

" Kai-kun..."

He opened the curtain and walked over to the unconscious Kai on the bed as he slipped a little before getting support from a nearby chair as he held Kai's hand.

" Don't worry, Kai-kun... You'll keep on living... I won't let you go yet..."

His Psyqualia flared as he held his head in pain while still gripping onto Kai's hand. A glow transferred from him and Kai as Kai slowly opened his eyes.

" Kai-kun..."

" Aichi...?"

With the sudden spurt of energy flowing into him, Kai's eyes widened upon realizing what was happening as Aichi collapsed into his arms after the glow disappeared. Kai removed all the equipments on him as he tried to shake Aichi awake.

" Aichi! Aichi!"

Aichi's eyes opened slightly as he smiled upon seeing Kai.

" Kai... kun..."

" Hold on! I'll get help soon!"

He pressed the emergency button as he continued to try to keep Aichi awake.

" Don't sleep! Keep looking at me! Why did you do that?!"

" It's... my... fault... that... you... ended... up... like... this..."

" No! It's not!"

" You... still... have... our... promise..."

" I'll fulfill it! I'll definitely stop him so don't sleep on me!"

He heard the doorknob rustling as the doctors tried to enter the room that was locked before by Aichi.

" After... the... promise... Don't... come... after... me... yet..."

" I won't if you don't go yet!"

" I'm... sorry... I... left... such... a... huge... burden... on... you..."

" No! It's not a burden! And I haven't even give you my present! You've got to live if you want it! I just want to see your smile again!"

" Thank... you... Kai... kun..."

" Aichi!"

Just as Aichi's eyes closed, the door was burst opened as the doctors swarmed in and saw what happened as Kazuto and Leon and the others just stood frozen.

" This can't be happening... I can't believe he used Psyqualia to..." Leon exclaimed

" How did it come to this...?"

" He was always this reckless but this...!"

" It's all because of Eiji Nochizawa...! First Asuna and now this...!"

As Aichi was taken to a surgery room, Kai clenched his fist while his eyes filled with anger.

 _" Eiji Nochizawa! I won't ever forgive you!"_ Kai thought

Behind the curtains, Yuna appeared for a few moments and watched the scene while holding an orb before disappearing.

* * *

And that's the end of this chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter (Without tearing up for some reason like the author herself did T.T) and I'll see everyone in the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

Hello, everyone! This is a new chapter! Chapter 5! I hope everyone will enjoy this new chapter! Without further ado, let's start!

Normal POV

In the morning, Kai was staring at a glass window as he laid his hand on it. On the other side was Aichi, now back to his comatose state, as he clenched his fist while laying his forehead on the glass in frustration.

 _~ Flashback start~_

 _After getting checked on, Kai had ran to where the surgery room Aichi was in as he saw the light still on with Leon and the others sitting outside._

 _" Kirigaya went back home... He said that he'll deal with Eiji Nochizawa tomorrow for this."_

 _" What's Aichi's condition now?"_

 _" We're not sure..."_

 _" Why did this happen...?!"_

 _" We were seeing Kirigaya off but when I sensed Sendou's Psyqualia, we ran back up but he was gone... The door to your ward was locked and doctors have been trying to get it open..."_

 _" Weren't you supposed to take care of him?"_

 _" He wanted us to leave him alone but we didn't know that this would happen..."_

 _" Here. We found this sitting outside the drawer."_

 _Sharlene handed Aichi's Augma to Kai as he took it from her and wore it as he saw the messages that were sent._

 _" He had already longed planned about this should anything happen to you."_

 _" It's all my fault... If I hadn't let my guard down..."_

 _The light on the surgery room turned off as Aichi was wheeled out by nurses to somewhere as the doctor followed out soon after._

 _" Doctor! What's Aichi's condition?!"_

 _At the question, the doctor just shook his head._

 _" I'm afraid his condition has severly deteriorated. I don't know what happened in there but his brain should've supposingly recovered enough for him to not have deteoriate but now... I don't know the exact cause but the damage has reached his brain stem. Soon, he'll become brain dead and we might have to take him off life support."_

 _" Isn't there anything you can do?!"_

 _" I'm afraid not. If by any miracle that he survives, I can't be sure either that he'll be able to live normally anymore. I'm sorry. We've transferred him to the Intensive Care ward but you must prepare for the worst."_

 _The doctor left after Leon and the others thanked him as Kai ran to where Aichi's ward was at as he entered when the nurses came out._

 _~ Flashback end~_

Leon and the others waited outside as Ren and the others came running over.

" What happened?"

" I take it that you two sensed his Psyqualia too."

" Yeah. But it didn't feel normal. What is going on?"

" Sendou used his life to exchange for Kai's."

" Why?"

" Eiji Nochizawa went after Kai and he was sent here in critical condition. And when Sendou found out what happened..."

" Is Kai inside?"

" Yeah."

" Don't go in yet. Let's leave Kai alone for awhile. This is a little too much for him to take in, that's all."

" Meanwhile, could you tell us in exact detail about what happened and how's Aichi's condition now?" Chris ask

" Yeah."

Inside the ward, Kai got permission from the nurse as he entered the door that separated him and Aichi as he sat down on the chair while watching the heart monitor continuing to beat.

" Aichi... Please wake up... Please... Open your eyes... You're the only one I have left to love and call family... Please... We still haven't done anything together as lovers... We still have a future so please..."

Kai looked up after sensing something again as he got out his own Augma and wore it as he saw the real Yuna beside Aichi.

" Yuna!"

" Don't get too loud. The nurse will hear you. I came to give this back to Aichi."

She opened her hands as an orb was inside.

" That's..."

" Aichi's memories from SAO."

" Why didn't you give this earlier?!"

" I can't. You see, the scan and extraction of memory from SAO came from the fear of dying. I was waiting for him to overcome that so that I could give this back to him but... I didn't think that the time he did overcome it was this result."

" No way..."

" I'm going to give this back but given his condition now depends all on his willpower. Put on his Augma."

" Y-Yeah..."

Kai took out Aichi's Augma that he kept with him as he wore it on Aichi without the nurse noticing and Yuna let the orb be absorbed back into the Augma.

" He should be fine for now. I'll watch over him, you have something with you that relates to what Eiji's about to do, right?"

" Is it... The concert ticket?"

" Yes. By doing a major scan around the whole stadium, the scan can cause the survivors to become like Aichi, or even worse, death."

" No way..."

" Stop him... And my father..."

" Your father?"

" He's Augma's creator and the mentor of SAO's creator, Kayaba Akihiko. My father, Shigemura Tetsuhiro."

" Your father is Augma's...?!"

" That's right. He's doing all this to revive me as an AI using the memories from the SAO survivors of me. That's what the scan is for."

" He'll go that far...?!"

" Yeah. So please, stop Eiji and my father for me and for Aichi."

" I will."

" Thank you. Oh, and Kai."

" What is it?"

" Eiji's not done with your friends yet. He's sent them invites to the concert as well."

" What?!"

" Your friends don't know yet but you should know what to do."

" Yeah, I know. Contacting them won't help much but I think they can help with something else."

" Huh?"

" They get fired up when fighting. So we'll use that to our advantage."

" What do you mean?"

" You'll see."

At Kai's smirk, Yuna flinched a little.

" Now I know why Aichi doesn't like to always take you so seriously..."

" He said that?"

" I could tell."

" Well, just watch."

Kai opened his messaging app on his Augma as he cautiously typed a message to his friends while making sure the nurse want watching as he sent the message.

" 'Be careful. The concert is a trap. Boss monsters will spawn after Yuna's concert. I heard that Aichi would recover fully if we defeat all of them. Would you like to participate?' Seriously? You're not telling them the truth?"

" Well, it is partially true. By defeating every boss monsters, the memories from the ones who got their SAO memories extracted would go back to them once the plan has been taken down, right?"

" That's true but..."

" Oh, I've got a reply."

" 'I'm in!', 'If it's for Brother, then I'm going!', 'Let's show our support for Sendou-kun's recovery!', 'Let's do this!'... Your friends are really predictable..."

" I'll update Aichi's condition to them once we meet. No problem. Hear that, Aichi? Everyone's not going to let you go so easily. So, you've got to wake up, alright?"

" I'm sure he heard you."

" Yeah."

" You still have a few more hours before the live."

" I'll go get ready."

" Didn't you want to spend more time with Aichi?"

" Aichi's strong. Now I'm certain. I can believe him. I know that he'll wait for me."

" I see."

Kai stood up as he remembered something and searched for something in his pockets. He heaved a sigh of relief when he found a pouch.

" I thought they might've taken it out or something..."

" What is that?"

" I didn't just went to defeat boss monsters. I promised already that I would give him a present."

He took out a necklace with a small crystal bottle hanging on a black string.

" The shopkeeper said that the crystal used to make this bottle represents life and love. I thought that it would look great on Aichi and didn't really bothered about the meaning but now... I'm going to make sure that he'll also know that I'm always by his side. No matter where I am, so..."

He wore the necklace around Aichi's neck carefully as he placed a soft kiss on Aichi's forehead.

" I'll be back soon. Then I'll be going now."

" Yeah, be careful."

" I will. Count on it."

Kai exited the room with a newfound determination as Ren approached him.

" Kai, so how was it?"

" I'm going to the concert. To stop Nochizawa. Yuna told me everything about what he's planning to do at the concert."

" Yuna?"

" Yeah. Yuna's father is planning to do a full range scan around the stadium on every SAO survivors in there. Once it's complete and the scan occurs, major damage will be dealt to the brain since the Augma sends out the scan waves. It's enough to cause permanent damage or even worse, death. All just to revive Yuna as an AI."

" And Yuna told you all about it?"

" The AR idol, Yuna, is her dream that Nochizawa remembered. The Yuna that talked to me was the real Yuna's consciousness. So I'm going to stop them."

" Then don't leave me out. I'm going too." Ren said

" I don't plan to. If my theory is true, then boss monsters will appear to inflict the fear in the survivors to cause the scan. So I'll need everyone's cooperation on this."

" Yeah!"

" I know this all happened because of our negligence but since we have not much knowledge about Augma, let us stay here to continue watching over Sendou."

" Of course."

" Then I'll continue to keep watch on the Augma system to find anything interesting. I might just have a breakthrough soon. Give me a few minutes just after the concert starts and I'll be done by then." Chris said

" Yeah."

" Then Tetsu will be the driver again! We'll pick everyone up and go to the concert together!"

" Don't worry about that. Everyone is already on their own way there. We'll all meet up there and I'll brief them about what's going to happen."

" I got it."

They walked off as they got everything they needed ready and set off to the concert. They saw the others waiting by the entrance as they got off the car and greeted the others.

" Kai! Let's whoop Nochizawa's butt!"

" Don't get too vulgar and violent yet. I'll explain the situation but you guys must take this in seriously and not get hasty."

" Yeah..."

Kai explained what happened last night that let to what's happening now on the way in as they sat just behind Asuna and the others.

" Hey, guys!"

" Oh, you guys are here too?"

" Yeah!"

" So, Kai... If what you said is true..." Misaki whispered

" Yeah. This whole stadium is filled with SAO survivors." Kai whispered

" Aichi's not here today? He hasn't recovered yet?"

" No. Where's Kirigaya?"

" Kirito-kun said he's going to the toilet. So he should be back soon."

" I see."

Kai turned to the side as he looked around.

 _" ... I guess I'm leaving Nochizawa to you for now. I need to see what's going to happen here."_ Kai thought

Soon, the lights went out and the live started as Yuna jumped out from a burst of light.

" Nothing fishy happenin' yet..." Naoki muttered

" Just wait."

When her first song ended, Yuna suddenly stopped singing as the lights went out and their Augma activated, changing them to their Ordinal Scale battle outfits.

" What's this?!"

Boss monsters started to spawn everywhere in the stadium as Kai got a call.

 _" Kai!"_

" Chris!"

 _" I'm looking at what's happening from a drone I hacked! It's only momentarily so listen carefully to what I have to say! That big screen displaying the numbers is how much the scan is progressing! Once it reaches 10,000, the mass scanning will occur! You've got to hurry and defeat all the boss monsters or at best, get everyone to get rid of their Augma!"_

" The second choice is impossible now... Everyone is in too much panic to hear me. Looks like only the first option is possible."

 _" And one more thing. You might need a person who's familiar with this word. Apparently, Augma is a device that has data extracted from a Nervegear. So there's a full dive program inside it. I don't know what that program is for but if someone like Yuna knows whether it can benefit you guys, then use it."_

" Yeah, I will. Thanks."

 _" Good luck, Kai. And don't forget, Aichi's still waiting for you."_

" Yeah. I won't forget."

He hung up the call as he ran to the others, who were fending off the monsters on their end.

" Tell Kirigaya this once he comes back! In the Augma, there's a full dive program already inside! I'm sure he should know what to do after that!"

" How do you know?!" Miwa ask

" I know he might known something or if even Yuna could come and tell us then I don't mind! As long as I'll be able to stop this as well!"

" Where are you going?!"

" To where Nochizawa is! My side of the promise is not over yet!"

" Then leave this to us! Go!"

" Yeah!"

Kai ran off as he tried to remember where Kazuto told him that he'll meet Eiji and was soon at the carpark as he saw Chaos Drake attacking the defeated Eiji. With one hit, Chaos Drake was flung back momentarily as Kai grabbed Eiji by his shirt collar.

" What are you standing here cowering for?! Huh?! What number 2?! You're just a coward wearing a strong front because of a machine you're wearing! Things like that don't last long, Nochizawa! Stand up and fight!"

" I can't... I have no power... Director already don't need me anymore... I can't be with Yuna or Aichi anymore... It was because of me that Yuna died! Because we tried to fight, Yuna has to die in front of us!"

" But that's all in the past! Don't let your past sins cloud your judgment! Think about the present, about now! What can you do now to change another sin that you're going to add up?! Just sit here and let yourself be killed?! Or are you going to face this?! Let me tell you this! Aichi's not dead yet! He's still alive!"

" Aichi is...? But he said that he would give his life..."

" Yeah, he did but he's still fighting right now! To live for me, for you, for us! Yuna, the real Yuna, gave him his memories back, so his condition will improve! I'm sure of it! So if you, who's still alive and can fight but in this state, compared to Aichi, who's lying on at hospital bed, fighting and still waiting for you to change! He's been doing this all for you! So that you'll change your ways!"

" Aichi..."

" I was the same as you... I committed a sin that I thought I couldn't face myself from but Aichi pulled me out of that darkness despite all the situations we've gone through so I know... This sin will be no different if you don't help me stop this now! It's either you fight or stay here to die!"

Kai picked back up his sword when Chaos Drake recovered as he started to fight it again, leaving Eiji to think about his words as Kai was soon thrown back by Chaos Drake. It was soon raising its claws again as it suddenly froze when Eiji stabbed it with his sword and it exploded in fireworks.

" Nochizawa..."

" ... Aichi's still alive, right? Then I now see another reason to live other than for Yuna and our promise. Even if it's only the two of us, our promise is still there. Yuna will continue to live our hearts... So, I'll... I'll fight!"

" That's what I want to hear."

Lending Kai his hand, Eiji helped Kai to stand as they nodded. Another boss monster appeared as they started to fight it again

* * *

At the hospital, Aichi's finger twitched as Leon took notice of it.

" Sendou?"

" Aug... ma..."

" Augma? You want to use it?"

" I... need... it..."

" Jillian, Sharlene. Keep watch of the nurse."

" You don't think he's talking in a dream?"

" No. This is different."

" Alright. Leave it to us."

Leon nodded as he wore the Augma on Aichi and it activated. Aichi's mouth opened again.

" Link... start..."

* * *

Just as the boss monster was defeated, Kai and Eiji panted as a voice suddenly called out to them.

" Kai-kun. Eiji-kun."

They turned behind as they saw an image of Aichi.

" Aichi?!"

" I'm using the Augma. I'm sure you might've known by now that the Augma has a full dive system. Yuna has activated Kirito-san and the others' Augma upstairs for it and now they're fighting to save everyone. I can activate it for the both of you. So what will you do?"

" Where are they fighting in?"

" The 100th floor boss monster for SAO. In the Ruby Palace."

" Well, they can't do it by themselves. We'll go together."

" Yeah."

" Then let's go."

His Psyqualia activated as Kai and Eiji laid down against the wall.

" Link start!"

They were soon full dived into the chaotic battle in the Ruby Palace as Kai slashed away a rock coming towards Kazuto while Eiji deflected the sword.

" 'The Incarnate of the Radius'... That's the 100th floor boss monster of the SAO game? It's huge."

" Kai?! And... Eiji Nochizawa?!"

" I'll fight too!"

Aichi appeared in his Ordinal Scale battle outfit.

" Aichi! Don't be reckless! You seriously full dived into here in that condition?!"

" I can do this much at least for now. I mean, I don't know what'll happen to my real body when I wake up, right? So I'm going to enjoy this fight and moment for as long as I can."

" Don't talk as if you won't remember anything when you wake up. I won't let that happen."

" I'll take your word for it but for now... Let's get that thing!"

" Yeah!"

Just then, Asuna dived in and stabbed the Radius in the eye as she hopped off after that.

" Asuna!"

" Looks like she's alright now too."

" Yeah."

A green blast then came soon after as Leafea came flying from a portal and Yui had called other ALO and GGO players to help fight. After that, Yui loaded a program that had their last saved data from SAO.

" Wow... I never wore this in a long time..."

" Now it does seem like the old times."

" Hey, we're not old!"

" Well, I'm not from SAO or anything other games here so..."

Aichi giggled as he tapped Kai's shoulder.

" Then let's start from the very basic, right, Eiji-kun?"

" Yeah!"

" We'll create an opening for you guys to consecutively attack! Let's go, Kai-kun, Eiji-kun!"

" Yeah!"

The three charged as the tree for recovering the Radius's health appeared.

" Eiji-kun! Give me a boost!"

" Yeah!"

Eiji ran in front of Aichi as he jumped on his back to get close enough to the water droplet as he used a sword skill to hit the Radius from above when the droplet hit the bottle necklace Kai gave him without him knowing.

" Switch!"

Eiji immediately caught up and delivered slashes as Kai got ready while running up the arm.

" Switch!"

At the word, Kai started delivering more blows to temporarily immobilize the Radius as he turned to Kazuto and the others.

" Now!"

" Yeah!"

Everyone attacked as the Radius was soon defeated by Kazuto and a sword was given to Kazuto.

" Looks like you can use that to defeat the boss monsters in reality."

" We need to go back now. Finish it, Black Swordsman."

" See you guys later."

The three disappeared as Kai and Eiji woke up. They looked at each other as they heard Yuna's song.

" Let's go see Aichi."

" Yeah."

As they ran to the entrance, Eiji heard Yuna's voice.

 _" You remembered... My dream... Thank you, Eiji."_

Managing a small smile, Eiji continued running to the hospital with Kai as they arrived at Aichi's ward. Kai opened the the door as they immediately ran into the other room without looking through the window.

" Aichi!"

Leon and the others looked over to him just as they removed Aichi's Augma as they saw Aichi and their eyes widened.

* * *

And that's the end of this chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and I'll see everyone in the next chapter!


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